CFTC chair vows to ‘move swiftly’ on crypto rules if Congress fails to pass legislation

The head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) vowed Thursday to “move swiftly” on establishing rules for the cryptocurrency market if Congress fails to pass legislation on the matter this year.

CFTC Chair Michael Selig said at a meeting with crypto and prediction market executives that the agency stands “ready to begin immediately implementing the bill,” known as the Clarity Act, if passed.

However, he added, “If Clarity continues to stall because of Democrat obstruction, the CFTC will utilize its existing authorities to begin establishing a regime for crypto asset markets. We owe it to the American people to do so.”

“We will heed President Trump’s call to codify a future-proof digital asset market structure that cannot be undone by the crypto haters,” Selig continued.

The Clarity Act aims to create a regulatory framework for the industry by splitting oversight between the CFTC and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Senate Republicans and crypto-friendly Democrats have been negotiating on the bill for nearly a year, but several key sticking points remain. Most notably, Democrats are pushing for stronger ethics restrictions.

Despite a push to pass the legislation by the August recess, Senate GOP leaders ultimately punted a vote to mid-September, dimming the measure’s prospects of passing this year.

Selig said Tuesday that he has directed his staff to “begin exploring rules to codify a CFTC market structure for crypto assets using the agency’s existing authorities.”

Under such rules, crypto exchanges would be designated by the CFTC as crypto asset markets and permitted to offer trading, Selig said. He also noted his staff is looking into establishing ways for developers to “offer their protocols in a legal and compliant manner.”

“We’re going to give Clarity its breathing room for a vote, but if the Democrats cannot support a bipartisan work product which reflects compromises from both sides of the aisle and ultimately send a fair version of the bill to the president’s desk, then rest assured, I will direct CFTC staff to move swiftly to propose these rules for the industry,” he added.